Girls’ volleyball team clinches MIAA tournament berth

Wednesday

Playoff berths were on the line at Leominster High School on Wednesday, Oct. 24, and the Blue Devils volleyball team took full advantage of the opportunity.

The Devils ousted visiting Ayer Shirley, 3-0, in front of a raucous crowd, as Leominster punched its ticket to the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Tournament for the first time since the 2013 campaign.

In 2013, the Blue Devils qualified for the Central/West Division 1 Sectional Tournament as the ninth seed, falling 3-0 to eighth-seeded Doherty in the first round.

In the first set on Wednesday, the Blue Devils raced out to a 4-1 lead on an ace by junior captain Destina Vivo Amore. With the Devils holding a 12-8 lead, the squad embarked on a 6-0 spurt in the middle of the set, prompting Ayer Shirley to call a timeout. The hosts built a 20-10 lead on an outstanding rally, which featured a kill by Amore and a textbook dig by junior captain Faith Akoachere. Leominster scored five of the final nine points to earn a 25-14 opening set win, with the clinching point coming off the hand of Akoachere.

The second set featured more of the same for the Blue Devils, as they embarked on a 9-0 push to build a 13-4 advantage. The unit finished the set on an 8-1 run, posting a convincing 25-10 second-set triumph. Junior Gabriela Guzman Rios clinched the win with back-to-back service aces, as the game-clinching one was a bullet right down the middle of the court.

The Panthers did not go quietly in the third set, though, as they provided plenty of resistance against the Blue Devils, including claiming an early 8-6 lead, as Leominster took a timeout to regroup. A kill by Akoachere gave the Blue Devils an 11-9 edge, but Ayer Shirley kept coming, building four-point leads at 17-13 and 18-14. Leominster pulled even at 20-20 on a kill by senior Louryanie Pinto Encarnacion.

The Panthers fired back, winning the next two points, with an ace by senior Rhyschel Perez giving the visitors a 22-20 advantage. Leominster stared at a 24-22 deficit, but the squad fought out of two game points, and pulled even at 24-24 on a kill by Rios. With the match sitting at 25-25, Leominster called upon its high-end talent, and Akoachere and Amore reeled off back-to-back kills to clinch a 27-25 third-set victory.

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